


Merry Christmas, I could care less

by iamnotalizard



Category: Bandom, Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, M/M, tis the season and all that jazz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-24
Updated: 2013-12-24
Packaged: 2018-01-05 20:58:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1098525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamnotalizard/pseuds/iamnotalizard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was Christmas eve, and Ryan was working at fucking Target.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Merry Christmas, I could care less

    Ryan sighed, walking through the brightly lit aisle. He rubbed his hands together, silently cursing for leaving his sweater in the employees lounge. He thought briefly of going to fetch it, but then discarded the idea. He could live without it, and he didn’t want to get in trouble.

    Not that there was anyone there to get mad at him. They were all at home. Sleeping, or spending time with their families.

    It was Christmas eve, and Ryan was working at fucking Target. The last minute shoppers had dwindled down to only ten in the store, then five, then three, and now, none. It was eleven forty at night, and he was working until about three. Ryan has never hated the twenty four hours a day rule more than he did now. But, then again, what would he be doing if he wasn’t working?

    Sleeping, maybe, probably studying, trying not to hear the party happening in Pete’s dorm. The students that didn’t go home for the holidays were always a small amount, so they always band together to get booze, and get wasted. Ryan never went home, for any holiday, and didn’t go to the _We are thankful FOR BOOZE AND WEED WOOOO!_ parties on principle.

    The store was cold, despite the fact that the heater was on; it was the shoppers, and their body heat that kept the store warm. The employees weren’t allowed to mess with the temperature either. The store was decorated with paper things hanging from the ceiling, tinsel tossed over shelves, and small fake trees on counter tops. It was a sad sight, really. Ryan tried to remember who was working. Most people had already left, or were hiding out near the back of the store. Places where people couldn’t find them. He sighed while fiddles with his bracelets before he went back to putting things back in their place. Christmas shoppers never put things back where they belong.

    Ryan made his way to the makeup section of the store. There was a large, round counter, that held three cashiers on different sides. Decorations were taped to the sides, a plastic tree decorated with strings, and ribbons and anything that it would hold up sat next to a register. Beside it, a plate of cookies. Victoria had been nice enough to swing by the bakery downtown and pick them up, so that the night shift workers could have a snack if they wanted. She had worked night shift on holidays a lot, just bad luck, and she knew how boring, and slightly heart breaking it was. There were still some left, cold and crumbling, but delicious nevertheless. He hopped over the counter, strings of tinsel catching on his jeans, and crouched down on the other side. He brought his knees up to his chest, and sighed for the upteenth time that night. It was Christmas eve, and he wasn’t at home, he wasn’t asleep, and he knew when he got back to his dorm, he would just chuck the presents he would have to give Spencer and Jon to the corner, and sleep, then wake up, alone, and go to Starbucks to get coffee, alone, and smile at people who wished him a merry christmas. Then he would go back to his empty dorm, and read, or study, and maybe call his family because he felt like he had too, all while other people were laughing with their moms and dads and brothers and sisters. Ryan kind of hated Christmas.

His head jerked up when he foot steps, and a weight land on the floor across from him.

“Oh,” Ryan looked at Brendon, who looked just about as miserable and bored as him, “I didn’t know you were here.”

“Kind of the point.” Ryan smiled. He had a smallest little crush on Brendon, but Brendon did too. They’ve gone on dates, and had kissed, but they both had commitment issues, or were too busy. They were both okay with how things were.

Brendon smiled back. “So, how is the wonderful Ryan Ross doing on Christmas eve?”

“Just about the same as the famous Brendon Urie is doing on Christmas eve.” He replied. Brendon gave his a sad smile.

“That bad, huh?”

“Yeah.” He reached up to the countertop, and snatched a cookie off the plate, offering it to Brendon. He took it, munching on it happily.

“So, I never found out why the wonderful Ryan Ross is working the night shift at Target, on Christmas eve. Don’t you have some magical amazing people convention to go to, or something?” He grinned, obviously flirting but also curious. Ryan shrugged, a bit shy.

“Wasn’t really invited to Christmas dinner, wouldn’t really go even if I was.” Ryan was looking anywhere except Brendon, but out of the corner of his eye he saw him frown. Brendon shifted, and scoot his body across the floor, until he was pressed close to Ryan.

“I wasn’t invited either,” Brendon whispered, sadly. “My parents didn’t really want me to come to college, but they could deal with it. But then they found out I like boys, like you, and suddenly I wasn’t their son, I guess. I haven’t talked to them in a few months.” He looked sad, Ryan noted. Of course he was sad. Ryan sighed, and rested his head on Brendon’s shoulder.

“Christmas sucks.” He murmured, sighing happily as Brendon placed his arm around his thin waist.

“Not really.” Brendon replied, looking at Ryan. He looked sort of happy now. “Not if you spend it with people you care about.” Ryan probably would have said something else, if Brendon hadn’t leaned down and kissed him.

They’ve kissed before, they’ve actually gone past kissing, but it wasn’t a regular occurrence. They weren’t dating. Ryan was too nervous about relationships, and Brendon was still a bit God fearing. Dates and kissing, flirting and touching were one thing, a relationship was something totally different. Ultimately, once you started dating someone, you either married them, or break up with them. That kind of terrified Ryan.

But the way Brendon was kissing him, they way he always kissed him or looked at him, it kind of made him want to try dating, and hope that the result was the former option. He sighed, leaning into the kiss, drinking up the affection. His arms found themselves around Brendon’s shoulders, anchoring them together, not that they needed to be. They did that fine by themselves.

It was over all too soon, in Ryan’s opinion. There was a slight blush covering his face, eyes half lidded. He probably should have said something about how much he liked Brendon, or anything along those lines. But instead the first thing that left his mouth was, “I didn’t even get you a present.”

And Brendon _laughed_. His laugh was amazing, magical even. Ryan always smiled when Brendon laughed.

“It’s okay.” He said, “I didn’t get you anything either.” And Ryan laughed too. Brendon pulled out his phone, and turned it on. And together, huddled behind a counter, in a cold, empty Target, unable to find anyone else, they watched as the clock counted down. Eleven fifty eight.

“You know, I sort of maybe kind of really like you.” Brendon said. Eleven fifty nine.

“Yeah. I know.” Ryan said, “I do too.”

Huddled together behind a counter, in a cold, empty Target, unable to find anyone else Ryan wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

The numbers on the phone changed, going from eleven to twelve in a mere second.

Christmas.

Not knowing what else to say, Ryan whispered, “Merry Christmas, Brendon.”

“Yeah. Merry Christmas to you too.” He said. Ryan scooted closer to Brendon, and suddenly he liked Christmas just a little bit more.

**Author's Note:**

> tis the season and all that jazz  
> so yeah Christmas, ryden, target. basically my whole month  
> merry Christmas, or whatever the heck u celebrate, have fun you crazy kids


End file.
